GMG's Friday Find: Take the Guesswork Out and Put the Plants In!

Looking at your empty containers wondering what to plant this year?

Photo by Shawna Coronado

Rather than being discouraged or confused, think of your container as a blank canvas that by mid-summer can be filled to the brim with colorful flowers or delicious fruits and vegetables.

Not the artistic type? Then take advantage of a garden center workshop near you for inspiration and know-how and quickly learn the dos and don'ts for a successful garden and stunning containers.

Photo by Shawna Coronado

For example, Schaefer Greenhouses in Aurora, Illinois, is a hosting a workshop with garden and lifestyle writer, Shawna Coronado, TOMORROW, April 27th from 10:30-2:30.  Shawna can help you turn your flower/veggie vision into reality.

In Shawna's workshop, gardeners will learn:

• How to make a pizza container garden
• Techniques for creating drought tolerant organic vegetable gardens
• How to utilize the color wheel to create eye-popping color combinations of flowers and plants
• How to identify which vegetables are best to grow in containers
• About companion planting
• What growing mix is best to use that provides continual nourishment and a healthy environment, like PRO-MIX which has patented Myco-Active plant food and water-saving gel right in the mix.

Wait, a pizza container you say?  Shawna will teach gardeners which herbs are best for your individual pizza taste and how to grow them.  But the best thing about this container is that children love to participate and they can be the 'farmer' who plants and waters these plants.  Teaching them the joy and satisfaction of watching plants grow and then creating a delicious recipe from them is invaluable. 

And one of the best advantages in participating in a workshop is leaving with everything you need to get started on your way to a season of plenty, from beautiful flowers to the freshest herbs and veggies; and maybe, if you're lucky, you can walk away with a demonstration container!  Now that's a few hours well spent.  Look for workshops in your area and take the guesswork out and put the flowers and veggies in!

You'll soon learn that there's not much you can't grow in a container.  Happy Gardening!

~Peggy

GMG's Friday Find: Plant, Share and Care This Earth Day!

Back in the late 60's most people were not very concerned about our impact on planet Earth; those were the days of the hippie and flower-child power with protest the order of the day.  Americans were slurping leaded gas, air pollution was the smell of success and "environment" was a word you may get in a spelling bee.

Then along came Rachel Carson's New York Times bestseller, "Silent Spring," representing a watershed moment for the environmental movement, raising public awareness and concern for all living organisms and public health. Earth Day 1970 capitalized on a new emerging consciousness putting environmental concerns front and center, and that movement has continued uninterrupted with April 22nd marking the 43rd year of Earth Day.

There are many ways to celebrate Earth Day.  Almost every city in the country organizes events and activities to mark the occasion, you won't have to look far to see what's happening in your neck of the woods. In Columbus, Ohio they are holding Earth Day 2013: Stand Together, the largest volunteer service effort across the country to make Columbus communities greener.  People volunteer their labor and companies, like PRO-MIX, donate growing mixes. In the past 7 years efforts have resulted in over 40,000 hours of labor and 19,000 trees planted throughout the regions.  

Here are a few more suggestions you may consider for you and your family:


Costa Farms

Plant a Tree/Have a Plant Party  - Recent studies have shown how trees and our health and happiness are co-dependent, and studies have proven that houseplants provide much needed fresh air for the massive amount of time we spend indoors. If you aren't in the market for a tree, you can certainly run to your nearest market or home improvement center for a variety of houseplants that can clean your indoor air for better health. Another fun activity for kids is an Earth Day Plant Party where they decorate a kid-friendly container with stickers and then pop in little green heroes like ferns and snake plants. Remember to look for the O2 for You label!

Build/Design a Birdhouse/Make Homemade Seed - A fun project you can enjoy with kids is making a birdhouse or designing a birdfeeder and then crafting homemade birdseed that you can put in pine cones and other 'natural' finds. Teaching our children the value of caring for wildlife is a lesson they are sure to pass on to future generations.

Perky-Pet

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle all day long - There are so many ways to accomplish these goals, even for just one day.  Use less water in your morning shower, walk or bike to work and save gas, turn off your lights until it's dark, avoid using disposable plates and cutlery, bring your own bags to the grocery store and avoid the plastic bags, find a way to reuse an old household or garage item, and recycle everything you can. If it's not already, this mindset for just one day can be the beginning of a lifelong habit.

Hold a garage sale/Donate -  Spring is the perfect time to thin out closets and garages of unused or unwanted clutter.  A garage sale, whether community or neighborhood, can benefit many who don't have certain necessities or you can donate items to charities to resell for cash.  Involve your children and see if there aren't some toys, games and sporting equipment they can include, helping them understand that giving is a rewarding endeavor. 

James Farmer

Cook an Earth Day Meal - Plan a menu that uses locally produced food and decorate your table with found and/or recycled objects.  Have your guests participate in a wreath-making activity using material from your garden and produce from the grocery store or farmer's market. It's not only fun, everyone gets to go home with a fabulous wreath for the summer season.

Whatever we do on Earth Day is certainly something we can do everyday.  We are all stewards of the Earth and as John Muir said, "When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world." Happy Earth Day...everyday!

~Peggy
Garden Media Group

GMG's Friday Find: The Secret Ingredient for Perfect Soil

Mycorrhizae is not just hard to pronounce, it's also not a secret. It is a fungus that grows in association with the roots of a plant in a friendly, helpful manner, and this has been occurring for more than 400-million years!

These fungi are a vital component of soil's chemistry and helps to boost the development of the root system and its capacity to absorb water, nutrients and minerals.  Unfortunately, some activities like erosion, tillage, topsoil removal, and construction can deplete naturally occurring mycorrhizae.

What does this mean to the average gardener? Now you can enhance the roots of your plants and grow healthier, stronger plants by using the all-natural, beneficial MycoActive organisms (mycorrhizae) found in PRO-MIX®  consumer growing mixes.  Three new case studies have proven that with MycoActive you can achieve considerably more yield as seen in this chart:

The results are significant, and there are mixes for every gardener's need:  An Ultimate Potting Mix, an Ultimate Garden Mix, an Ultimate Organic Vegetable & Herb Mix, even a Cactus Mix.  Here's what you can expect to achieve when using these mixes:

•  Increases water and nutrient uptake
•  Increases resistance to drought
•  Increases transplanting survival rate
•  Increases plant and root system vigor
•  Increases crop quality
•  Increases quantity of flowers/fruits
•  Increases crop yield
•  Enhances growth significantly

Just take a look at the differences in these lettuce and cucumber plants -- amazing!

 Growing stronger, larger and more abundant plants and veggies is what gardeners want, and PRO-MIX®   with MycoActive delivers.

 We invite you to find a mix that suits your needs at your local independent garden center...and let us know what terrific results you experience.  Happy Gardening!

~Peggy
Garden Media Group

The Biochar Company goes to Hawaii

The Biochar Company, makers of Soil Reef™ soil amendment, are joining forces with one of the most successful biochar production companies in the US, Hawaii Biochar Products, LLC. 

Hawaii Biochar Products, owned and operated by Josiah Hunt, has produced over 100 tons of biochar, an average of one ton per week, since the company’s inception in 2009.  

Listening to Hunt explain biochar at TEDx Hilo makes me want to both save the world and move to Hawaii!

According to Lopa Brunjes, co-director at The Biochar Company, “Josiah is one of the leaders in the biochar industry. He is a wise, old young man whose whole heart is vested in developing biochar. We are so lucky to have him, and Hawaii Biochar Products, as part of our greater mission.”

Josiah Hunt with char 

Hunt wants the same thing. “If I am really going to make a difference, I need to make a heck of lot more biochar,” he says. “I have the motivation, the experience and the relationships. I have some great partners, as well—but I needed a partner with the capacity and shared vision that The Biochar Company team has, to really help make biochar happen.”

Touted for greater fertilizer efficiency, greater water efficiency, greater microbial activity, and greater yield, biochar, or, biological charcoal, is used for soil building and to enhance overall soil health. 

“Soil is like a pot of chili. It’s not just the beans. It’s not just the meat. It’s not just the veggies or the spices. It’s the whole thing, and the flavors are complimentary,” says Hunt. 

Josiah Hunt's "coral reef for the soil"

“Charcoal is a naturally occurring element of soil and is not something new. The practice of using charcoal in agriculture is actually very old and most cases forgotten,” Hunt explains. “In the realm of science involving waste management, energy production, climate change mitigation and agriculture, the paradigm was so exciting it had to be given a name—biochar.”

“The future of biochar lies not just in farmyards, but in backyards,” says Hunt. “Every gardener can make a difference.”

Read more about the partnership here.  And buy Soil Reef at select Whole Foods stores in the mid-Atlantic or at www.soilreef.com 

-Katie @KatieGMG
Garden Media

Share Your Love for Mother Nature on Earth Day

Here at GMG, we're all about giving back to Mother Nature, so for Earth Day (April 22nd) we thought we would share some simple solutions for going "green" on this day and every day.

I guarantee you'll feel good as you garden with a purpose inside and outside your home while giving back to Mother Nature. It's that easy!

Gardening for the Birds & Bees

You don’t need to water or fertilize or spray with harmful herbicides and pesticides to grow a beautiful garden. Let Mother Nature do the work to save time, money and natural resources. Going native in your garden with American Beauties Native Plants attract wildlife and help maintain our fragile eco-system. They’ve teamed up with the National Wildlife Federation to help gardeners create a Certified Wildlife Habitat that brings life to your landscape.

Houseplants with a Purpose

When it comes to “green", plants are King. As the earth’s lungs, plants clean the very air we

breathe and give back oxygen, moisture and natural beauty. Since most of us spend the majority of our time indoors, houseplants are the perfect solution to purify indoor air from volatile organic compounds as they freshen our indoor spaces. Costa Farms offers fascinating facts about how houseplants clean the air, plant guide and care tips, videos and more at www.o2foryou.org.

Eco-scaping

Earth day can be every day with a sustainable landscape design. Today, professional landscape designers are helping their clients achieve “green” landscapes. According to Bobbie Schwartz, president of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers, “Some clients are asking for sustainable design because they want to lessen their use of natural resources. Others, faced with mounting water bills, are asking for sustainable design with a desire for landscapes that will thrive with very little water once established.”

A hot trend that's gaining in popularity is low and no-water gardening called Xeriscaping, a style of landscape design that requires little to no watering. “Xeriscapes don’t need to look like desert landscapes,” says Schwartz. "They’re just as applicable in the Midwest and can be a beautiful mix of trees, shrubs, perennials, ornamental grasses, and groundcovers when well-designed.” To find a professional landscape designer for great garden and landscape designs for your home, visit www.apld.org.

Healthy soil, healthy plants

Healthy plants start with healthy soil. Earth-friendly, peat-free and 100% organic soils like Organic Mechanics Potting Soil are rich in minerals, nutrients and ‘good bugs’. They help give plants the “boost” they need to help grow strong, healthy roots. Recognizing the natural goodness in Organic Mechanics soils, Organic Gardening Magazine has recently awarded them with its “Seal of Approval” for its organic soils and soil amendments. “Our seal of approval recognizes that Organic Mechanics potting soils are right in line with our mission to work in harmony with nature, says Ethne Clarke, editor-in-chief.

On Earth Day and every day, here’s a thought to remember: “To me, sustainable means two things: not harming the earth and leaving it better for future generations,” says Schwartz.

I couldn’t have said it better!

Stacey GMG

The Organic Mechanic on Garden World Report!

Mark Highland, President of The Organic Mechanics Soil Company is a guest on Shirley Bovshow's Garden World Report this week! Mark is live from Longwood Gardens showing off the amazing indoor gardens & Chrysanthemum festival! Enjoy!

Watch live streaming video from gardenworldreport at livestream.com